'Vampire Academy' Sinks Its Teeth Into A New Vampire Sub-Genre [Trailer + Stills]

The new film is based on the on the award-winning teen novel series by Richelle Mead of the same name

Vampire Academy might be the next big thing to dominate the tween movie market when it arrives in cinemas next year. With its release fast approaching we got out first glimpse at the movie version of Richelle Mead's award-winning book series of the same name, and saw for the first time stars Zoey Deutch, Lucy Fry, Danila Kozlovsky, Sarah Hyland and Olga Kurylenko in action.

Rose [L] and Lissa [M] have to stick together in the film

The film will follow Rose Hathaway (Zoey Deutch) as she trains to become a guardian for her best friend and royal vampire princess Vasilisa Dragomir (Lucy Fry). Rose is a dhampir, which means that she is half human and half vampire, and she trains alongside other dhampirs and full-blood vampires at the prestigious St. Vladimir's Academy, learning to become a fearless and deadly protector to Vasilisa, aka Lissa, and the peaceful Moroi clan. The Moroi are a vegan-like society who drink only donor blood and vow never to kill others, unlike a number of their vampire cohorts.

Rose is trained to protect, no matter what

The Moroi and the Academy come under severe threat from the brutal Strigois clan, a nefarious bunch who drink their blood with a side of mindless violence and murder, intentionally going out of their way to do harm when they hunt for their blood. There is bad blood between the Strigois and Moroi, and in particular have a vendetta against Lissa, the heir to the Moroi dynasty. It is up to Rose to stop their advances and protect Lissa from harm, using what she has learnt to do what she is destined to, but has she learnt enough?

Blood is family. Blood is pain. And blood is death.

With the help of her mentor Dimitri Belikov (Danila Kozlovsky), they become stronger and a more formidable force for the Strigois to reckon with, but the odds are still against them and Lissa is in near-constant peril. Having failed once already, running away is not an option, they must stay and fight and help overcome the rising tide of danger to the dhampir, vampire and human population.

Zoey Deutch training hard with Danila Kozlovsky

Vampire Academy was directed by Mark Waters (Mean Girls, Mr Popper's Penguins) and written for the screen by Daniel Waters (Batman Returns, Demolition Man) and is the latest in a long line of vampire-based films being churned out by Hollywood at the moment. The film will arrive in cinemas on 19 February, 2013.